Some Wisdom On This BEAUTIFUL Sunday

Why am I posting instead of heading down the mountain for our church's Sunday service? 2 little sick guys. Well, not so sick, but I refuse to be the Mom that gets all the other kids at church sick, so we will sit it out today. But, it does give me some time to post about a piece of wisdom that I have always felt was true, but didn't quite know how to articulate. The lovely Kelly over at 'The Beauty of Sufficient Grace' laid it all out so wisely on this post. I did get her permission to use excerpts from her post, so thank you SO much, Sister!

Very often I hear people, especially Christians saying, "God will only give me as much as I can handle." I have never felt that this could be scripturally correct. So, on Kelly's blog last week she was discussing a book she read by Lynette Kraft, 'In Faithfulness He Afflicted Me'. So, here is some of what Kelly wrote in her post (She captured what I have been thinking so well):


"For many years, I have claimed to dislike the saying, "God doesn't give us more than we can handle." I even have a plaque in my kitchen referring to this, a gift from Rose, a sweet church friend. I have written about it in articles, spoken about it at churches, women's groups, in presentations, and in conversations with friends. The reason I don't like that saying is because it isn't true. There are a lot of things I cannot handle. Who could handle the loss of a child? It's not about my ability to cope with the trial before me, but about the ability of my God to carry me through. My God is able. I have often said that I prefer His words: I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength(Phil. 4:13)... and: My grace is sufficient for you; for My strength is made perfect in weakness (2 Corinth. 12:9). You can imagine my surprise and excitement when I read Lynette's words in her amazing book. She talks about the real verse people are referring to when they say that phrase (1 Cor. 10:13) and then writes:
God didn't promise that he would never give us a trial that we couldn't handle. In fact, if you look at 2 Cor. 1:8-10, you'll see quite the opposite. It says that they were..."pressed out of measure, beyond strength, despairing even of life." That doesn't sound like they were handling it. It goes on to say..."that we should not trust in ourselves, but in God which raiseth the dead, in whom we trust that he will yet deliver us." It's not a matter of handling it ourselves; it's only through Christ that we can handle anything! ( p. 104 In Faithfulness He Afflicted Me)

So true! After walking through the trials she has faced, Lynette "gets it" like few people do. She exemplifies one who has clung to God in the midst of trials. She did not grieve as those without hope. She placed her hope in God, who is able to make beauty from ashes...who provides the sufficient grace to walk through our trials...to turn our mourning into dancing. She doesn't just offer comfort in the sorrow, but hope that you can grow through the affliction. That God has good plans for you. The joy you can experience in the dancing that follows the mourning is sweeter than our human minds can imagine. He has more for us than to merely survive our struggles. He wants us to fully live and experience the joy and freedom He has for us. There are gifts, even in the storm. Life-changing beautiful gifts."



What wisdom in Kelly's post!!! So, thank you for putting into words what I so often thought, and for giving me the scripture to go along with it. It seems that Lynette's book is a must read.

Are you going through something that feels so overwhelming and brings on anxiety and fear? Know that Jesus is not the author of fear: "for God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control." 2 Timothy 1:7 I would love to pray for you, so please leave a comment with any request and remember, it is not that He gives us what we can handle, but is there to help us handle what we are given. God bless your Sunday.